


Finding Shelter

by Alys_Gay_Parade



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: A Cipher OC, Aly's pain factory, Because I say so that's why, Everything Is Okay Forever dimension, Gen, Help, Soft Stangst, Update: this is now an anti-verse fic, Very Shitty OC, because bill is a good older brother and tried, demon adoption, demon is a loose term, except not bc guess what, she just happens to have powers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-05
Updated: 2018-10-11
Packaged: 2019-05-02 12:33:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,185
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14544831
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alys_Gay_Parade/pseuds/Alys_Gay_Parade
Summary: When he destroyed his dimension in a failed revolution, Bill had one wish. All he wanted was for his siblings to be okay. For them to have the means of survival if things went south. She has the power to find Shelter, but is it really that simple for his little sister?





	1. The Start of Something Strange

**Author's Note:**

> So I was thinking... Bill had a family. And he'd probably want them safe.
> 
> The Will mentioned here is directly tied to my reverse Falls fic. Which I need to work on.

_The small lavender square picked herself up from the ground for the first time, bows blowing effortlessly in the breeze caused by the surrounding chaos. She looked around and saw the perpetrator of her dimension's demise: a lone yellow triangle. She looked up at him quizzically as he dragged his blue twin toward their solace – a rip in space time. An escape from the chaos he incited._

_The blue one, hat askew and bent as he dangled from where his twin floated, looked down to her. He shared a sad look to his brother. Suddenly, she felt arms wrap around her. The red trapezoid touched his forehead to hers before throwing her through the zero gravity void and directly into the boys. The three tumbled through the rip as their home crumbled behind them._

_“I’m sorry, okay?” The yellow triangle turned away in their weightless nothingness. “I messed up bad.”_

_“Messed up is an understatement, Bill.” His twin grabbed his wrist with tears in his eye. “Because of your selfish decision, our parents are dead and our home is gone. You wanted to leave without our sister, for crying out loud.” He gestured to the square, leaving her scared and perplexed. “Can you think about anybody but yourself for once in your life?!”_

_“Stop fighting!” Her shout brought her brothers’ attention to her. “Please… Bill… Will…” Upon seeing her tears, the boys held her close._

_“I promise,” Bill started softly, “No matter what happens… I promise I’ll protect you both.”_

_There was a rumble in the darkness. Three separate holes in space time opened. Each of the siblings were torn from the huddle, Bill’s fearful screams of apology being drowned by the rumbling and the yells of his brother and sister._

_When the lonely square awakens, she is greeted by an axolotl, large and majestic. “Your brother made a request when he made his deal with me… that you were given powers to survive if things went wrong.”_

_“Powers? Deal? What is happening?”_

_“You cannot return home, Little One. But I can grant you the ability to find a new one. Be good, my child.”_

_The lavender square felt power flow through her body, almost painful in the burning sensation it caused. She was left alone in the void, a swirling cacophony of color. A pink fire showed in her hands, and she began to play with it. Accidentally dropping her ball of flames, it created a window to another dimension. And she watched for millennia, waiting for somebody she could call to for help. A voice echoed in her mind:_

_“Three hundred sixty within four corners_   
_Her kin’s mistake weighs on her shoulders_   
_Watched her own dimension burn_   
_Misses home but can’t return_   
_Says she’s fine, the trauma mild_   
_The broken heart of a doomed, young child_   
_To save herself from unending pain_   
_She need only invoke my name_   
_One way to change her fate_   
_New form, new time, a wiped clean slate”_

  
Ford headed out into the woods for the third time that day. He’d discovered a cave and had to return to his cabin for supplies before entering. Six years in Gravity Falls had taught him to always be over prepared. He lit his lantern as he passed into the mouth of the cavern, cautious. Even if the paranormal didn’t inhabit this cave, bears very well could. He was surprised to find ancient cave drawings depicting some sort of lavender, square goddess. Translating the notes beneath her seemed futile as he read them aloud.

On his hike back, Ford sat down to rest in the late spring heat before dozing off. He found himself waking in a world of stars, hearts, and lots of pastel colors. He finds a small lavender square adorned with white bows on her top corners. 

“Where am I? Who are you?” She waved her hand and a table with a child’s tea set manifested.

“This is my safe space… it’s all a dream to you, but it’s very real to me. I’ve been watching you for a long time, Stanford Pines.” Her voice was curt and to the point, albeit that of a young child. She pours him a cup of tea before sitting down. “My name is Serena Cipher.”

“Why have you been watching me?” Ford takes his plastic cup and sips at tea that would have far too much sugar if he didn’t have a large sweet tooth.

Serena looks away for a moment before taking a breath, deciding to keep her story secret. “You are a very brilliant mind, Ford. And I could use the help.” She looks back to him, folding her hands. “The dimension I currently reside in is falling apart. I have no way to escape. For millennia, I’ve attempted to find someone smart enough to help me escape my demise. And I’ve been failed time and time again. My time is running short and I was losing hope. Until you came along.”

Ford looks her over, a pang of empathy shooting through his soul. Sitting before him wasn’t a goddess. She was a lost child. “I’ll do what I can to help you.”

“I hope you don’t also fail. You’re my last chance of survival.”

Ford’s research came to a screeching halt as he and the geometric dream child he had befriended worked tirelessly on advanced physics and blueprints for a portal to his world.

One night during his visit, he turned to see her lying on her clouds, fast asleep. He walked over and covered her, preparing to end his time in the mindscape for the night. However, the mental realm she had created suddenly shifted. For a brief moment, two triangles could be seen beside her. The vision ended as soon as it began, and Serena woke with a start.

“Serena… what was that…?”

She looked sad for just a moment, drinking in the memory of her brothers’ caring embrace. “Those were my brothers… I miss them…” She paused before turning her sad gaze to Ford. “Do you miss your brother? You dream about him a lot.”

Ford was taken aback by the question; by how she was forcing him to think about his twin. “Of course I miss that knucklehead. He’s my brother.” Serena closed her eye for a bit before floating over.

“It’s not my place to tell you what to do… but my brothers would never turn away from each other. Even if Will is a crybaby. Even if Bill is mean and thinks he’s better than everybody else. They would go to the ends of the multiverse for each other. And me, too.”

Ford hugged the girl, at a loss for words. She looked to the blueprints – pinkprints would be a more accurate word – with curiosity. After five minutes, Ford broke the silence. “I’ve triple checked the math and I think we can start building…”

Serena became lost in deep thought, silent for another indeterminate period of time. “You can’t do it alone. Never of us have the engineering experience to do this. Even if I took over your body, the portal is too complex for me mechanically. You’d just get hurt.”

Ford rubbed his chin in thought, becoming well aware of the current situation. “We don’t have the experience… but I have a… friend… who does.”

Ford took his morning slowly, looking at the phone every few minutes. It’s not that he and Fiddleford were on bad terms… quite the opposite, honestly.

He’d been the best man at Fidds’ wedding and been named his son’s godfather. But the air would be awkward. Ford was desperately in love with the man. And he knew that Fiddleford didn’t want to be with his wife. He knew Fidds was gay. They dated in college after all. But Fiddleford needed to keep up appearances for his family. And that irked Ford. He eventually stopped his staring contest with the phone and called his friend.

“McGucket computermajigs!”

The southern drawl that greeted Ford was literal music to his ears. He smiled and soaked it in for a few seconds before responding. “Fidds, can you come to Oregon to help me with a project? I’m building an interdimensional portal. But you’re a better engineer than me.”

“Stanford? Of course I’ll come!” He heard Fiddleford spit his tobacco and smiled. “I’m glad you’re giving me the offer, actually. My wife found out my little secret and the divorce has been messy.”

“Oh, Fidds… I’m sorry…” Ford gave false empathy at the situation. The woman was a menace and had treated Ford like a monster the whole time he’d been at their house. Whether it was the six fingered hands or his openly admitting to her about having a thing for Fiddleford he’d never know.

“I’ll be there in a few days, Ford. Start getting things ready!” Ford hung up with a quiet goodbye before standing and rushing out the door. He needed to get some welcome gifts.

When he returned from his outing, Ford found himself staring at the phone again. The earlier conversation with Serena had stuck with him, and the nightmares he’d been having about Stanley’s wellbeing were plaguing his conscience. “I don’t even know a number to contact him at and I want to call him…” He sets down his bags before grabbing the phone from the receiver. “Maybe… mom will be able to help me track him down.” He only feared getting his dad instead. Slowly, he dialed the number to his childhood home.

“Two dollars an hour.” Well, some things never change.

“Mom… it’s Ford.”

“Stanford?” Her surprised tone reminded Ford of his ineptitude. How long had it been since he’d last called home?

“Yeah, I know I haven’t called in a while… but I’ve been very busy with research. Gravity Falls truly is an amazing place…”

“No, no, it’s fine, hun… you never have liked phone calls. You must need something… or just miss us.”

“A little bit of both, actually.” Ford laughed off his awkwardness as he took a seat. “I’ve been wanting to get in touch with Lee lately. You remember when we were eight and Lee started having nightmares while I was off on a choir trip?”

“He was dreaming that you were being beaten within an inch of your life by some snot nosed brats and we got a call from the hospital no more than ten minutes after he woke me up about it. I’m familiar with the idea of twin ESP, Ford.”

Ford took a deep breath before collecting his racing thoughts. “I think the twin ESP is hitting me this time. I keep having nightmares about Lee. Yesterday was the worst, and ruined my midday nap.” He looked to the photo of him and Stanley on the boat that he kept tucked near his heart at all times. “I was in his point of view, tied up and stuck in the trunk of a car as it slowly filled with water. He managed to chew his way out, but the feeling of the fresh gunshot and knife wounds on top of the chill of the water left waking in a cold sweat.”

There was a long silence before the phone was set down on the other end. Ford could hear drawers opening and papers shuffling. “Stanley called me yesterday… he said he’d be in one place for a bit since he was a little beat up.” Ford immediately copied down the number she gave him and thanked her with a quiet “love you, mom” before hanging up.

He immediately dialed and managed to get himself redirected to his twin’s room. “Who is this?” The fear in Stanley’s voice was raw, causing his words to quake. Ford could practically hear the tears welling in his eyes.

“Lee… it’s me… it’s Ford.” Ford braced himself for the sobbing that began on the other end of the line. He wished with all his might that he was right there beside his brother. “I had a dream yesterday about your forced swim.” He was never good at comfort. He always said the wrong things. And he was sure this was no different. Until Stanley’s sobs turned to laughter.

“I almost died, Ford… I was so scared that I would never hear your voice or see your face again…”

“Lee…” Ford’s voice trailed off as he thought about how that could have ended. They could feel the others’ pain. Their grief. Ford smiled sadly as he thought about the stupid grudge he’d held for ten long years. Then the thought of his earlier conversation with Serena passed his mind. “Come to Gravity Falls… I miss you. And you seem like you need a friend.”

“You… really want me to come stay with you…?”

“Of course. You’re my twin. You need help.” It was Ford’s turn to start sobbing. He leaned his head on his hand, biting his lip to keep himself from fully breaking. “I couldn’t stand up to dad… and you had to suffer for it. I was and still am kind of mad… but you don’t deserve this… I didn’t want this.”

“Hey… sixer… please… don’t cry.” There was silence as Ford, and presumably Stan, cried silently for a few moments. “I’ll start the drive tomorrow… I need to rest right now.”

“See you, Lee…”

“Love ya, Ford.”

Ford was silent for a moment before smiling softly. “Love you, too.”


	2. Glue the Pieces Back Together

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So i know it's been actual months. And when i learned about the anti-verse in the geaphic novel and that anti-bill is a purple square that just tells people to believe in themselves... i couldn't hold back. Serena is canon, everybody. This is officially an anti-verse fic.

"Your friend and brother should both be here any minute..." Serena, despite the misgiving she just pointed out, cuddled further into Ford's lap. "Shouldn't you be waiting for them instead of meditating?"

Ford gently adjusted one of her bows before patting her back. "I would, but I've been so busy that we haven't spoken in a few days. You're all alone in here." He haphazardly waved at a cloud that drifted too close to his face. He wondered what it must be like – being a kid with no social stimuli for millennia.

“I’m used to being alone, Stanford. I have been for a long time.” Ford didn’t respond, instead standing and stretching. “You should go now.” She went and sat, using a finger to draw in the air.

Ford snapped out of his meditative state to the sound of the front door opening. Stanley must have arrived first. “I’m in my office, I’ll be there in a moment!” He stood and cleaned up his meditation setup before heading to greet his brother.

“Stanford never told me he had a twin…”

“Yeah, I kinda fucked things up for him. I don’t blame him for not talking about me. Ruined his chances at west coast tech.”

“If ya hadn’t, he wouldn’t have met me… so I guess it worked out.”

Ford reached the bottom of the stairs and looked to Fiddleford and Stanley, standing in the front room with soft smiles. He was lost for words. Fiddleford looked stressed, and his brother looked half starved and dirty. The three exchanged stares in complete silence. “I know you probably hate it, but the mullet suits you, Stanley.” He shifts his look to Fidds, their eyes meeting. Ford’s face goes red and his eyes dart to the floor. “Fidds… you… look nice.”

Stanley saw Ford’s emotions almost immediately. He went to his twin to swing an arm over his shoulders, but the movement caused a twinge in one of his many wounds. The pain shot through his body and he folded in on himself, falling to the ground with a loud thud.

“Stanley?” Ford knelt beside him and noticed a bit of blood coming through his shirt. He carefully removed it to find a knife wound on Stan’s collarbone that looked self sutured and badly infected. It needed immediate treatment. It looked like it might go septic. “Fiddleford! Hall closet, first aid kit. Also, the roll of paper towels from the kitchen.” Fidds nodded and rushed off as Ford pulled out a pocket knife. “Stanley… this will hurt, okay? I’m sorry.”

He carefully began to cut the fishing line holding the halfway healed wound closed, occasionally trying to pry the wound open. Stanley’s agonized yelps of pain made Ford flinch every time, his hands shaking. Tears welled in his eyes as he quietly reassured his twin that he was okay.

When Fiddleford returned with the items he was asked for, Ford had finally gotten the wound open. He grabbed a wad of paper towels and carefully pressed them against the oozing mess on his brother’s shoulder. Stan let out whimpers of pain, tightly shutting his eyes.

“Is he gonna be okay…?” Fiddleford sat himself on the floor beside them as Ford gently pressed the paper towels into his twin.

“He will be. Remember, I have twelve degrees. One of those is a medical degree. I just have to drain this, disinfect it, re-suture it, and coat it with antibiotics regularly.” He leaned over and pressed his forehead to Stanley’s in a comforting manner. With the shift in weight, a pocket in the wound gave a loud pop. Stan let out a guttural scream that almost made Ford flinch away, but he just shut his eyes.

It wasn’t much longer before the wound was fully drained. Ford reached into his first aid kit and grabbed a bottle of peroxide. “If you thought that was bad, brace yourself.” He soaked more paper towels before starting to clean the gash in Stan’s shoulder. Stanley opened his mouth, but no sound came out other than some pained gasps.

A few minutes later, Stan had a fully cleaned and dressed wound, and he lay there on the floor. Ford got him to the couch and sat him down before taking his temperature. “Hm… that’s a high fever… you’re lucky you aren’t in a hospital.”

“Maybe I should be…” Ford smiled at his sibling before walking off. He returned with some medication.

“Take this every four hours until the fever breaks.”

“Thanks…” Stan smiled back at his twin before doing as instructed.

Ford left the room with Fiddleford, sighing deeply. Fidds rested a hand on his shoulder, and their eyes met. Blue on blue for what seemed like minutes, but was only a few seconds. Ford broke the gaze and the two stared at the floor in silence.

“Ford… if you wanted to rekindle things… we could.”

Ford looked to his friend’s red face. The way the blush lay on Fiddleford’s cheeks made him look just like he did when asking Ford out back in college.

“I mean… I know we were both hurting at the wedding…”

Ford watched his expression become more unsure.

“Seeing you in that suit… but not holding you… it was the worst.”

“I feel the same way. I’d never felt so far away from you.” He hesitantly took Fiddleford’s hand. His own face grew bright red. “Fiddleford…” He couldn’t finish his thought as Fiddleford pulled him into a kiss, clinging to him like the world was ending. Ford returned the embrace, tears welling up in his eyes. Though the kiss ended, they stayed holding each other.

“Watching you care for your brother reminded me of all the times you cared for me and treated my injuries when I got beat up in college… how you held me as I cried and made me feel safe.” His voice was a whisper as he tightened his grip, as Ford might slip away at any moment.

“How you taught me to play guitar and I’d play wrong on purpose? Only to blame it on my extra fingers so you could hold my hands?” Ford pulled away to look Fiddleford in the eyes once more. “I’m so happy that you feel the same as I do…”

Neither of them remembered when they started to dance slowly. But once they noticed their subtle swaying, they didn’t stop. Stan coughing in the doorway to the living room caught their attention. They turned quickly, releasing each other from the embrace.

Stan only held a smirk. “Now, as I was going to say, before my shoulder almost killed me…” he walked over, slinging his good arm over Ford’s shoulders, “I always knew you liked guys, too. Never thought you’d actually find someone that liked you back, though.”

“You don’t think… it’s shameful?” Stan laughed at Ford’s concern.

“Do I look like dad?”

Ford smiled sheepishly before frowning. “Lee, go sit down. You have a fever!”

“Okay, okay! It’s good to be beside you again, though.”

The three took a few days to settle in, relaxing and getting a feel for the new surroundings. Small things, like sitting together and watching tv, board games, going on short walks together…

“Ya know, sixer… you, me, Fiddleford… it almost feels like we’re a happy family unit.” Stan stopped on the trail the were walking to stretch. “It’s nice…”

Ford smiled as his fingers intertwined with Fiddleford’s. “I’ve found that living out in the middle of nowhere is a great thing for my mental health. It gives me space and less to think about.” He noticed an eye shaped notch in a tree and stopped. “But it’s time to get serious. I have work to do.”

Fiddleford looked to him. “The portal.”

“Portal?” Stan looked at his brother’s determined face. “Ford, what are you on about?”

“Stanley, I have a goal with my research. I want to build a way to traverse between dimensions. Think of all the things we could see!” Ford’s eyes sparkle with enthusiasm. Upon noticing Stan’s scrunched brow, he sighed. “Lee, come on…”

“Ford… you’re doing something really dangerous.” The downward quirk of his twin’s mouth and the furrowing of his brows forced Stan to rethink his wording. “Perhaps… I can do the hard labor? To… lessen the workload?” Relief flooded his system at the light on Ford’s face.

“Of course! I mean… I was going to ask that of you anyway…” Ford smiled shyly, causing his boyfriend and brother to smile back at him. “We need supplies. Fortunately, I came across something perfect.”

Ford led them on the long hike, stopping at interesting sights. Ford stopped at seeing a sleeping gremloblin, putting out his arm to stop his companions. They watched in terror as Ford inched closer, pulling out his journal and beginning to sketch. Stan quickly grabbed his shoulder. As Ford looked down, he noticed a twig prime for the snapping. He mouthed a silent thank you before stepping slightly closer and finishing his sketch.

As they reached the valley, Ford could only beam as he walked over to the rock hiding the hatch down into the spacecraft. “You must be wondering why we hiked all the way out here.” He looked to his compatriots with sparkling eyes and a wide grin.

“Yeah, there’s nothing out here.” Stan crossed his arms, cocking an eyebrow quizzically at his twin. Fiddleford looked around in confusion, sticking to Stan like glue.

Ford, not letting his eyes leave them, pushed the rock away, revealing the metal beneath. He opened the hatch and began his descent without a word. His brother and boyfriend both immediately followed, trying to keep him from getting killed.

"I discovered this craft a while back. Everything around here is dead and defunct." Ford pressed a few buttons to prove his point. Fiddleford tried not to let his anxiety show, clinging to Ford's arm. "My research dates this craft's crash to be thirty million years ago. Isn't it exciting?!"

Stan and Fidds exchanged a look, both terrified of their surroundings, but finding Ford's enthusiasm endearing. There were a few moments of silence before Fiddleford broke it. "I mean... yes. But don't get too excited. It'd be real easy to get hurt down here."

The three carefully combed through the craft before finding the engine room. "A hyperdrive!" Ford ran over, blue eyes glittering in the low light. "Fidds, come over here and help me unhook this. It's the perfect power source!" Fiddleford did as instructed, delighted to be able to use his technological know-how.

Stan held the component steady, smiling at how happy his twin looked. They gathered the hyperdrive and any scrap bits of metal they could carry.

The hike home was uneventful, mainly dominated by Ford's excited ramblings. Stan and Fiddleford just occasionally rolled their eyes at his energy, their love for him uniting them at their core. Upon arriving home, they went straight to the basement so Ford could show the blueprints.

“Here are the schematics for the portal. I've quadruple checked all the math, so we shouldn't have any issues.” Stan and Fidds look over the plans with intrigue.

“I have no idea what I'm looking at.” Stan's statement caused the other two to laugh, but he only smiled at their teasing.

“Well, gosh, of course ya don’t. This is… some advanced mechanical design. I- Stanford, how in the world did you come up with this?”

Ford cleared his throat, embarrassed to his core. “You could say it came to me in a dream.” He lifted the blueprints with a bright smile. He was going to make Serena safe. Even if it was the last thing he did.


End file.
